Automotive production in Mexico grew 9.9 percent, year-over-year, in February, totaling 295,787 vehicles. It was the 10th consecutive increase, according to data from national statistics agency Inegi, analyzed by SteelOrbis reveals.
The data on automotive production is an advanced indicator of the Mexican economy, due to its timely disclosure in relation to one of the sectors with the highest job occupation and because it is the largest generator of foreign exchange for Mexico due to its level of exports.
The increase in February was generated by the low comparison levels. The record level of production for a month of February was in 2020 with 335,708 units, in 2021 already with the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic it plummeted 22.8 percent, it was the worst drop in 14 years, only surpassed by the drop of 38.2 percent of February 2009.
For the first two months of the year, production increased 6.1 percent, compared to the same period in 2022, totaling 576,053 units. This volume only exceeds that registered in the first two months of 2021 and 2022.
In February, 77.9 percent of production was exported with 230,484 vehicles, 14.2 percent more than the February 2022 record. It was the third consecutive increase. In the accumulated two months, 468,619 vehicles were exported, 12.0 percent more than in the same two-month period of 2022.
Inegi production information comes from the records of 13 companies of the Mexican Association of the Automotive Industry (AMIA) and the export data of 12 affiliated companies.